


"It's a very small age difference."

by QueenC



Series: Glimpses into the universe of us [1]
Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Barely there romance, Fluff, Friendship, M/M, Sharing A Tent, charlie is a good friend, oblivious Alex Standall, post S04e04, senior camping trip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:28:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24672343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenC/pseuds/QueenC
Summary: Alex is upset over Winston during the camping trip. Charlie may know one thing or two about cheering him up.
Relationships: Charlie St. George/Alex Standall
Series: Glimpses into the universe of us [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1786504
Comments: 14
Kudos: 155





	"It's a very small age difference."

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my very first fanfic after YEARS of not writing/posting anything. Srsly, it's been so long I can't even remember what my last story was about. It's also my first attempt at this fandom, but what can I say. I just love these two so much, and I feel a lot was left unsaid on the show about the development of their relationship. My mind felt like it was a good idea to fill in those blanks and look, here we are!
> 
> Please let me know of any typos or anything. I proofread this like crazy, but you never know.

There's a hole in the tent's roof. Alex knows it because, despite the darkness around him, he can see a sliver of moonlight coming from the outside. It's not so big that he would have noticed if he weren't lying stiffly on his sleeping bag looking straight upwards, but now that he's found it, he can't stop looking at it. Also, Zach's snoring is so loud now that Alex wouldn't be able to fall asleep anyway, even if he was sleepy – and he wasn't.

Despite everything that had happened during the day, his thoughts still insisted on traveling on towards Winston. What a little shit he was. And how foolish had he been on believing his best intentions.

No one in Crestmont seemed to come around with good intentions these days. It was honestly tiring.

His eyes glanced absentmindedly towards the third boy in the tent. Maybe that was not entirely true. 

Charlie seemed... He just seemed nice. For no apparent reason. Like it was just how he was wired, like he couldn't be any other way if he tried. It rattled Alex a little. After everything he'd been through, it was hard to understand such niceness coming so naturally, so unrequested from someone. He couldn't help but be wary of Charlie's easy manners, even though the both of them and Tyler had spent quite some time hanging out together before the winter break. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Alex knew he was probably just being overly paranoid, but. But. Who could blame him, really?

(With Winston's alleged motives to even come near him, he guessed no one could.)

Alex sighed, shifting around in his sleeping bag for a more comfortable position, but it was hard to maneuver too widely inside the cramped space of the tent. When Zach had invited him to bunk with them for the night, he had been more than happy to accept the offer – he loved his dad, but after the talk they'd had after Alex almost drowned in the lake, he suspected Deputy Standall would be watching him very closely all night long. And Alex couldn't blame him, not after he had risked his job and everything, but being around him and being the center of his attention just now would be way too stressful. So yeah, Alex had jumped at the opportunity to leave their shared tent, somewhat relieved that neither Zach nor Charlie would be paying him much attention while he just wallowed quietly in his sadness for a while longer.

That thought had lasted the entire amount of ten seconds before he was faced with the reality that, among the three of them, he was the smaller one. And he wasn't even short. So right now there was very little space inside the tent unoccupied by lanky boyish limbs. Before they went to sleep, as they rearranged their sleeping bags on the floor in the only manner that seemed possible to make them fit, Alex had glanced skeptically around the space, foreseeing this exact scenario in his mind. He was not disappointed. On top of that, Zach's snores only seemed to fill up the tent even more, somehow.

He sighed again, more loudly this time, his leg jerking in a spasm as he rolled on his side. He felt it connect with something solid. _Someone_ , more likely. Alex thought of apologizing, but he couldn't even figure out which of his tentmates he had hit and they were probably very much asleep anyway. Zach for sure was. From where he laid on the floor, he couldn't see Charlie's face, but the boy had been very still for a while now, so Alex thought it was safe to assume he was the only one still up at this time.

“Can't sleep?” And clearly he was wrong, for Charlie's voice broke his reverie not two seconds after. Alex startled, jerking his neck slightly towards his voice, but it still wasn't enough to see his face.

“What gave me away?” He asked wryly, feeling something unsettle on his insides at being caught unable to sleep. He didn't want to put that much importance on what had happened, didn't want anybody assuming things. Charlie wasn't stupid. He had made clear without actually saying that he knew what had transpired between Alex and Winston.

“You just kicked me in the ribs,” said Charlie cheerfully. “And, well, before that. It'd be really a miracle if you could sleep through Zach's thunderstorm of snoring.”

“Sorry,” mumbled Alex, self-consciously curling inwards in his bag.

Charlie snorted a laugh. “No harm done,” he assuaged, and Alex heard for the first time the rustling of his sleeping bag as he moved around in it. “It _is_ a small tent. It was bound to happen.”

“You didn't seem to think so when you reassured me I could stay with you guys,” pointed Alex, half amused, half annoyed at the other boy's assurance.

“Oh, I thought so back then, yes. I just didn't mind it very much. Still don't,” Charlie seemed to hesitate for a bit before he trudged on. “You looked like you could use some company.”

Alex felt his annoyance winning over, even though he could sense Charlie was only trying to be friendly. “I had company,” he retorted, seemingly unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice. “I could have stayed with my dad.”

“I know, I know,” amended Charlie quickly, his agitation reaching Alex through the small space of the tent. “I didn't mean you had no one. Sorry if it came out that way. But, you know. I was maybe suggesting, like, some company closer to your own age?”

Alex felt a laugh bubbling up his chest, despite his sour mood. “You're younger than me,” he reminded Charlie, a small smile lingering on his lips.

“And you can lord it over me as much as you want, but it's a very small age difference, I'll have you know,” said Charlie, his voice adopting a defensive quality that made Alex curious for the expression on his face.

“Oh, wow. Is that your standard answer whenever a senior jock mocks you for your baby face?” Alex dug in a little more. He knew he was pushing, but he wasn't one to show affection with kind words and nice gestures. Charlie better find it out soon if he really planned to stick around.

“No,” Charlie answered firmly. “That one's only for you. I think it might be important to remind you that I'm not a kid.”

Alex's eyebrows drew together in a frown. Now he _had_ to see the expression in Charlie's face. “And why is that, exactly?” He asked, looking over his shoulder in an attempt to watch the other boy in his answer. The angle was bad, but the scarce light coming out from Mrs. Jensen's solar lanterns didn't help to reveal much anyway.

The silence stretched for longer than Alex imagined Charlie was capable of being quiet. Fully turning around in his sleeping bag now, Alex laid on his back, supporting his weight on his elbows as he tried to make out Charlie's silhouette in the poor light.

He also laid on his back, hands resting on his stomach, fingers intertwined. It was still hard to actually see his face, but Alex could tell from his bouncing leg that he hadn't suddenly fallen into a weird fit of sleep out of nowhere. “Charlie,” chided Alex lightly, curiosity growing in the face of the other boy's reluctance.

“I just --” Charlie started hotly, but then fell silent again. His leg bounced faster and Alex could taste his inner turmoil – whatever it was – on the air. He took a deep breath and then sagged visibly in his bag, body suddenly very still. “You can count on me, that's all. For anything you need. I just wanted you to know.”

It was so out of the blue Alex was almost sure that it wasn't what Charlie had meant to say. He thought of prodding a little more and then almost immediately after he thought better. It was not as if he could afford to make little of such an honest offer. Alex knew he could count on his friends if he needed, but each one of them seemed to be dealing with their own set of inner demons lately. He didn't blame or resent them for that, but it would be nice to have someone a little bit less entangled in their own mess for a change.

“Thank you,” Alex said instead, quietly. He wasn't sure to what degree he could really trust Charlie's words, but it was nice to hear them anyway. “It means a lot.” Charlie made an uncommitted noise on the back of his throat and the silence followed for a while. “Though I must say I'm delighted to hear so, I wouldn't be able to tell you can be so solidly reliable, you know. With you being so young and everything.”

“Oh, my _God_ ,” sputtered Charlie, mimicking Alex's stance and raising his upper body on his elbows. He sounded positively aggravated, to Alex's further enjoyment. “It's only one year, Alex!”

Alex couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head at how easily goaded Charlie could be. “I know. You're just really easy to mess up with. It's refreshing.”

“See, it's a bad thing that I can't see your face right now. I can't tell whether that's a compliment or if you're just mocking me further,” stated Charlie suspiciously.

Alex shrugged. “Guess you'll have to figure it out. What kind of friend would you be if you're not able to decipher my intentions from the sound of my voice only?”

“That's a tough one to answer, since you intone all of your sentences in the exact same way,” said Charlie sagely.

Alex blinked into the darkness, struck into surprised silent for a moment. Against his shin, he could feel Charlie's body shaking from what he supposed was repressed laughter. “Wait, did you just mock me now?” It was his time to doubt, but as soon as he asked out loud, Charlie was unable to contain his glee for any moment longer. His laughter echoed above Zach's snoring, and Alex fumbled for the closest item to hit him where he could reach. On further tactile inspection, he discovered it was a camping hat.

“Hey! Watch it!” Charlie reprimanded, but his voice sounded way too joyful for someone who actually cared. Alex rolled his eyes, fond despite himself. 

“It is called sarcasm, Charlie. It's a very fine art. I understand if you're not able to appreciate it, it's really high level,” added Alex, camping hat thrown haphazardly aside as he laid against his sleeping bag once again.

“I can appreciate it just fine, don't worry,” said Charlie, at ease. Even if he couldn't see it, Alex could hear his smile on his words. “And I appreciate it a lot, actually.”

For some reason that escaped his very own understanding, Alex felt himself blush. He was thankful for the darkness around them for the first time since their friendly banter started. “Go to sleep, Charlie,” he retorted, but it comes out softly than he anticipated.

“Yes, sir,” the smile was still on Charlie's voice as he rearranged himself into a more comfortable position. Alex vaguely wondered if he ever stopped being so cheerful. “G'night, Alex.”

“Night,” Alex replied, absentmindedly.

As he laid there on the hard forest floor, thinking not for the first time how much he hated camping, he was suddenly struck with the perception that he had completely forgotten about Winston for a solid couple of minutes. While he was bantering with Charlie. While Charlie kept him distracted. It was not nearly enough to make the bitter feeling of betrayal go away for good, but it had pushed it aside at least a little, at least for now.

Sighing somewhat contently and feeling a little better, Alex closed his eyes and waited for his sleep to catch on to him. He felt a little lighter, his chest less constricted, and he was thankful for that. He took his small mercies as they came these days, not one to deeply question or investigate them.

He falls asleep faster than he would have expected to. Zach's snores roll on till morning comes.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading <3


End file.
